Doing the Math on Your MoldMaker's Value

About this series: For those charged with raising the sales of a mold building company, differentiating one's company from the competition is fundamental. This quarterly series features actual examples of the front-line representative of a mold building company presenting new approaches to improve the customer's profitability.

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Doing the Math on Moldmaking Value: A-1 Tool's Customer-Driven Success

When a West Coast container manufacturer needed to reduce part weight due to rising plastic costs, they turned to A-1 Tool Company in Melrose Park, IL — and A-1 delivered more than a mold; they delivered a strategy.

The Challenge

The customer had already attempted to reduce wall thickness using their current tooling, only to see the results fail due to flow length limitations. They came to A-1 Tool hoping to salvage their existing molds.

Instead of making risky modifications to outdated tooling, A-1 proposed a smarter solution: building a new tool entirely, optimized for the thinner part design.

The Solution

Mike Schillaci, VP of Sales, and President Geoff Luther worked closely with the customer from the start — asking the right questions:

• What’s your estimated production quantity?

• How quickly do you need to fill the pipeline?

• What molding equipment is in use?

• Will automation be involved?

A-1 provided design options upfront, factoring in structural needs like ribbing or reshaping that could address drop tests or shipping requirements without significantly impacting cost. This meant the customer could make changes quickly if initial samples didn’t pass — no delays, no budget surprises.

Why a New Mold Made More Sense

While the customer originally hoped to reuse old tooling, A-1 demonstrated that building a better mold would yield greater long-term savings — and they backed it up with real numbers:

💡 The Results

• 15% faster cycle times

• Fewer rejects, thanks to better structural design and testing

• $800,000 per year in material savings

With the old molds expected to last about 10 years — and the new mold expected to match that — the ROI was undeniable.

“We provided contingencies and tangible data that the customer could take back to management,” says Luther. “We didn’t just build a new mold — we built a smarter one.”

Challenging the Past = Profitability

At A-1 Tool, questioning outdated approaches isn’t a disruption — it’s an opportunity. Their approach proves that investing in a better mold from the start isn’t just good engineering — it’s good business.